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Photoreactions of retinochrome at very low temperatures
Author(s) -
Tokunaga Fumio,
Watanabe Takahiro,
Uematsu Jun,
Hara Reiko,
Hara Tomiyuki
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
febs letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.593
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1873-3468
pISSN - 0014-5793
DOI - 10.1016/0014-5793(90)80207-y
Subject(s) - isomerization , liquid nitrogen , wavelength , absorption (acoustics) , photochemistry , extinction (optical mineralogy) , chemistry , molar absorptivity , retinal , irradiation , materials science , optics , physics , optoelectronics , biochemistry , mineralogy , organic chemistry , nuclear physics , catalysis
Retinochrome is one of the retinal proteins found in the retina of cephalopods. It catalyses the light isomerization of retinal from the all‐ trans to the 11‐ cis form. On cooling to 25 K, the absorption peak of retinochrome (λ max 490 nm) was broadened with a shoulder, showing the spectrum steepened on the long wavelength side. On irradiation with yellow‐green light (550 nm), retinochrome produced an intermediate with λ max at a shorter wavelength, around 465 nm, and a lower extinction coefficient than lumiretinochrome. It changed to lunuretinochrome (λ max 475 nm) in the dark on warming to liquid nitrogen temperature. We shall call this new intermediate prelunuretinochrome.